Thai Richards makes running the length of the A train look easy—or, not quite easy, but fun and aspirational, which is a feat in and of itself given that it's a whopping 34 miles long. Richards, 35, is a born and raised New Yorker and a semi-professional runner who has spent the past few years traversing the city by running the route of every single MTA train line and documenting some of those runs on Instagram.
Richards told Hell Gate that he sees his MTA runs—and all of the running he does in New York—as an avenue for deepening his relationship with the city he calls home.
"I've run from the border of Canada back to Battery Park with some buddies of mine for a relay race," Richards told Hell Gate. "I know my state, I know my city, and I appreciate it and I love it, and I want others to do the same. Visibility and opportunity and exploration changes people's lives. I want a lot of kids to understand that running can do that for you. It doesn't have to be a punishment type of thing. That's the vibes."
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